Regulate & Rewire: An Anxiety & Depression Podcast Amanda Armstrong

Episode 61 - Essential 8 Series (Part 3)

Breath can be used as a powerful proactive and reactive regulation tool. Your respiratory system (aka breath) is one of the most powerful physiological levers you can pull to shift the state of your nervous system. Did you know that every time you inhale your heart rate speeds up, and every time you exhale it slows down? Let's say you extend your exhale out longer than your inhale — well now your heat rate slowed down longer than it sped up. This sends an immediate message to and through your nervous system to activate your relaxation response.
You can also use breath to activate your system when you're in a state of Shut Down or want to practice increasing your stress threshold.
Ideally you want your natural breath throughout the day to steady, diaphragmatic breaths, in and out your nose. This is how we're evolutionarily supposed to breath. But it's estimated that at least 50% of the adult population has some kind of breathing inefficiency. Maybe that's mouth breathing during the day and/or night, short shallow breathing, imbalanced breathing, and so on. Let's change that!

📓 Download your Breath Workbook! - CLICK HERE

So here’s the 3 takeaways:
Breath is a pillar of health, your mental and physical health is only optimal when your breathing is optimal.Before you can use breath as a powerful regulatory tool you have to understand your basic breath physiology, when you do it becomes one of the most powerful proactive and reactive regulation tools.Different breath practices are optimal for different nervous system states, my book Healing Through the Vagus Nerve offers a section where it outlines supportive practices for the different nervous system states, including breath work practices.Looking for more personalized support?
Book a FREE consultation for RESTORE, our 1:1 anxiety & depression coaching program.Join me inside RISE, a mental health membership and nervous system healing space.Pre-order my new book, Healing Through the Vagus Nerve today!Website: https://www.riseaswe.com/podcast

Email: amanda@riseaswe.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amandaontherise/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@amandaontherise

Episode 60 - Essential 8 Series (Part 2)

I’m going to just come out with a pretty blunt to start today: there’s a set of minimal physical activity guidelines for a reason, if you’re not meeting them then you’re going to have problems (one of which is mental health).

Second only to sleep, I think movement is one of the most fundamental and non-negotiable habits for brain health. Research shows that even just a daily walk of 30 minutes can decrease depression and anxiety symptoms in almost all clinical populations as well as strengthening connections between brain circuits important for emotional processing, problem solving, decision making, and memory.
Human body’s are designed to move, the healthiest version of your brain lives inside a body in motion. Hit play to learn more!


📓 Download your Movement Workbook! - CLICK HERE


3 Tangible Takeaways:
Movement is essential for physical and mental health. If we aren’t consistently hitting the minimum guidelines for physical activity then we can’t be surprised when we aren’t optimally well.If you already have a consistent habit of movement and exercise then the next question to consider might be: Are the types of movement you’re doing are optimally supporting your mental health journey?What can you do today to make movement a more integral part of your daily life and healing plan? It is a cornerstone habit that heals and if you’re looking for more personalized support I’d love to support you inside my RISE membership where you’ll find tangible tools and personalized support to step into a life full of habits that heal.Looking for more personalized support?
Book a FREE consultation for RESTORE, our 1:1 anxiety & depression coaching program.Join me inside RISE, a mental health membership and nervous system healing space.Pre-order my new book, Healing Through the Vagus Nerve today!Sources: 
https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/physical-activityhttps://bjsm.bmj.com/content/57/18/1203https://www.technologynetworks.com/neuroscience/news/massive-review-identifies-exercises-that-could-most-benefit-mental-health-370600Website: https://www.riseaswe.com/podcast

Email: amanda@riseaswe.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amandaontherise/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@amandaontherise

Episode 59 - Essential 8 Series (Part 1)

Sleep plays a vital role in our overall health and wellbeing, yet 1 in 3 adults aren’t getting the recommended amount. If you're not getting the recommended amount of sleep, your mental and physical health will suffer.

In this episode we’re going to talk about – what happens when we sleep, why sleep matters for our mental and physical health, common struggles with sleep, and practical strategies for getting better shut-eye. If you're tired of feeling tired, let's dive in!

Resources Mentioned:
Sleep: Essential 8 - Mini WorkbookBook: "Why We Sleep" by Matthew WalkerSleep Foundation: https://www.sleepfoundation.org/National Sleep Foundation: https://www.sleep.org/3 Tangible Takeaways:


Prioritize Sleep: set a goal to get 7-9 hours of quality sleep at least 80% of nights.Reflection: If you are not currently getting the recommended amount of sleep, what small change can you start making today tonight to get you 1% closer to that?General Sleep Guidelines: Get off tech at least 30 minutes before bed. Get exposure to natural daylight especially in the first half of your day. Avoid stimulants like caffeine and sedatives like alcohol later in the day. Dim your lights in the evening and create conditions for optimal sleep when possible. And lastly, beds are for sleeping. So if you can't sleep, get out of bed, do a relaxing activity away from the bedroom until you feel sleepy, and then come on back.Looking for more personalized support?
Book a FREE consultation for RESTORE, our 1:1 anxiety & depression coaching program.Join me inside RISE, a mental health membership and nervous system healing space.Pre-order my new book, Healing Through the Vagus Nerve today!Website: https://www.riseaswe.com/podcast

Email: amanda@riseaswe.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amandaontherise/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@amandaontherise

EPISODE 58

Your habits matter, your lifestyle matters. Your overall health is the greatest contributor to your mental health. There’s no about of talk therapy or meds that can combat the natural stress load that gets put on your system by chronic sleep deprivation, sedentariness, dysfunctional breathing, too many inflammatory foods and too little nourishing ones.

AND YET... behavior change is hard, especially when struggling with anxiety & depression.
Today and in the next 8 episodes we’ll take a deep dive into talking all about habits that hurt versus habits that heal. This conversations paves the way for the Essential 8 series by helping you understand the neuroscience of behavior change, why it's hard and what can make it easier. Now let's dive in!

Looking for more personalized support?
Book a FREE consultation for RESTORE, our 1:1 anxiety & depression coaching program.Join me inside RISE, a mental health membership and nervous system healing space.Pre-order my new book, Healing Through the Vagus Nerve today!3 take aways from today's conversation:
Your daily habits play a big role in your healing journey. If you’re not living well, you won’t be mentally well. When you are stressed it makes sense to default to your most well-worn habits. When you do offer yourself equal parts compassion, accountability, and strategy for how to step back into your habits that heal.When establishing a new habit start small, laughably small, 1% small. Install a tiny habit by giving it a cure and a purpose, and then once that tiny habit is your new baseline – optimize it overtime.Have questions you'd like me to answer on the podcast? SUBMIT HERE
Website: https://www.riseaswe.com/podcast

Email: amanda@riseaswe.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amandaontherise/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@amandaontherise

EPISODE 57

When your nervous system has grown accustomed to chaos, things like stillness , rest, and slowing down feel unsafe. Because of this we often choose "healing" modalities that feed into the familiarity of chaos and intensity.

So are the cold plunges and HIIT workouts hurting your healing? I don't know. But join me for a conversation to talk through how they might be, to talk about how they held me back in my early healing journey and what I'd do differently if I knew then what I know now.

Looking for more personalized support?
Book a FREE consultation for RESTORE, our 1:1 anxiety & depression coaching program.Join me inside RISE, a mental health membership and nervous system healing space.Pre-order my new book, Healing Through the Vagus Nerve today!3 take aways from today's conversation:
Your nervous system will always default to familiar chaos over unfamiliar safety, the path towards healing means assessing whether the things your engaging in reinforce a familiar avoidance of stillness or invite in the discomfort of experiencing it.There are non negotiable needs you have as a human, things like sleep, movement, quality breath, community and so on. Stepping into habits that nurture that nature while simultaneously choosing experiences that build familiarity around safety is the path to more regulated living.Is a reminder to filter all suggestions, even research supported ones, from myself and others through a personalized lens to find your unique path towards healing.Have questions you'd like me to answer on the podcast? SUBMIT HERE
Website: https://www.riseaswe.com/podcast

Email: amanda@riseaswe.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amandaontherise/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@amandaontherise

EPISODE 56

Let's have another conversation around stress. Chronic stress can come as a symptom of our choices or the reality reality of our life circumstances, but it's usually a mix of both. I spent a decade create a life of chronic stress based on beliefs I acquired in my childhood and teenage years.

Here's the thing, stress isn't the problem, chronic stress is. There's also some cool new research that suggests that stress may only be bad for you if you believe that to be the case.

Join me for the full conversation as I unpack 3 main goals when it comes to stress.

ps. this episode includes a sneak peak reading of part of my new book, "Healing Through the Vagus Nerve"

Resources referenced in this episode:
Pre-order my new book, Healing Through the Vagus Nerve today!Part 1 (of 4) of my Stress Bucket Series on the podcastTED TALK: How to make stress your friendLooking for more personalized support?
Book a FREE consultation for RESTORE, our 1:1 anxiety & depression coaching program.Join me inside RISE, a mental health membership and nervous system healing space.3 take aways from today's conversation:
Take your stress seriously, but not so seriously that it stresses you out.Stress management starts with an intentional look at your stressors. Check out episodes 37, 38, 39, & 40 for a series on how you can do just that.When it comes with to stress the 3 goals are to: (1) decrease the likelihood of long term chronic stress (2) to increase your ability to reset from stress more quickly through the vagus nerve (3) To increase your overall capacity for stressHave questions you'd like me to answer on the podcast? SUBMIT HERE
Website: https://www.riseaswe.com/podcast

Email: amanda@riseaswe.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amandaontherise/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@amandaontherise